Key operated mechanism



19427 H. J. BUCHANAN-WOLLASTON ,3

KEY OPERATED MECHANISM Filed Jan. 27, 1939 Sheets-Sheet l 1 .Z. I Fg EgiZ. F1313.

In, I) 61.71101 1942- H. J. BUCHANAN-WOLLASTON I KEY OPERATED MECHANISM Filed Jan. 27, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 17, 19 2- J. BUCHANAQN-WOLLASTON I ,30

KEYYOPERATED MECHANISM 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Jan. 27, 1939 Nov. 17, 1942.

H. J. BU CHANAN'WOLLASTON KEY OPERATED MECHANISM 4 Sheeis-Sheet 4 F zo Inventor Filed Jan. 27, 1939 plane of the tumblers.

Patented Nov. 17, 1942 KEY OPERATED MECHANISM Hugo John Buchanan-Wollaston, Pakefield, Lowestoft, England- Application January 27, In Great Britain 4 Claims.

This invention relates to lock mechanisms and keys therefor of the kind employing tumbler members adapted to retain a moving part of the lock mechanism, such as a sliding bolt or pivoted latch, in the locked position, the invention being applicable to many kinds of locks and also to electric switches employing a bolt-like element movable into and out of a position in which the electric circuit is made under the control of the tumbler elements.

The invention has for its object to provide an efficient form of lock. mechanism which is proof against picking and is capable of offering an almost unlimited range of key permutations.

The invention consistsin a lock mechanism comprising in combination a fixed part, a part movable with respect thereto, two rows of tumbler members arranged in pairs in a plane parallel with the plane of movement of the movable part soas to be coaxial with each other when in the locked position, in which position the pairs of tumblers are arranged side by side within a common space defined in part by the fixed part and inpart by the movable part and which tumblers are movable in the plane in which they lie so as to bring the line of division between the two rows of tumbler members into alignment with the lineof division between the movable part and the fixed part and thereby render the movable part free to move in a plane parallel with the plane of' the tumbler members, and a key guide adapted to lead the inner end of a key made of very thin flexible material into contact with the outer ends of the tumbler members of one row while preventing anymovement of the key other than endwise.

The present invention differs from other types of lock in which axially movable pairs of tumblers are used chiefly in that, according to the present invention, the tumblers are arranged in a plane parallelto that in which the movable part moves and-in the adaptation of the lock for the use of a flexible key the end of which is guided into the Among other differences if the greater robustness of the tumblers rendered practicable by the fact that the said arrangement thereof allows the lock to be made very thin in spite of the said greater robustness. The comparatively great weight of the tumblers allows the return of these to the locked position, after removal of the key, by the action of gravity, when the tumblers move in a vertical plane, and this renders the lock simple and cheap to make. For the sake of ease of manufacture also it is preferred that the tumblers should lie in a common 1939, Serial No. 253,188 February 1, 1938 (C1. Tit-$52) space as definedhereinbefore instead of lying in separate spaces.

The inventionalso includes adaptation for the maintaining of the tumblers in the unlocked position, even when the key is removed, until the lock is required to be locked again, adaptation for looking at several different positions of the bolt, means for preventing the possibility of reaching the tumblers with narrow flexible strips of material, this preventing picking of the lock, adaptation of the lock for the use of a master key, and adaptation of the lock for automatic deadlocking of the lock, when mounted on a door, on pushing the door to closed position. The said constructional details will be fully described with reference to drawings hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figures 1 and 2 illustrate in diagrammatic form alternative arrangements of the invention,

Figure 3 is a front elevation of a practical embodiment of the invention and showing the tumbler members in the unlocked position,

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3, but showing the tumbler members in the locked position.

Figure 5 is a rear view of Figure 4,

Figure 6 is an end View of Figure 4.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary vertical sectional viewon an enlarged scale illustrating the operation of the pick-up plate employed in the construction according to Figure 3 to retain the upper tumbler members in a raised position.

Figure 8 is a sectional plan view on th line XX of' Figure '7 showing the manner in which the bolt operates to move the pick-up plate into a position in which it releases the upper tumblers.

Figures 9, 10 and 11 are front, edge and end views respectively of the pick-up plate,

Figures 12 and 13 are front and edge views respectively of a flexible keyfor use with the lock mechanism illustrated in Figure 3,

Figure 14 is another diagrammatic view showing a modification of the principle of the invention, applicable to an electric switch for example,

Figure 15 is also a somewhat diagrammatic view of a modified form of the tumbler members and of a master key for use in connection with the modified lock,

Figure 16 is a front view illustrating a construction of the key guide adapted to eliminate picking of the lock,

Figure 17 is a side View of Figure 16.

Figure 18 is a front View of a modification of the inventionapplicable to a pivoted type latch, the front plate of the mechanism being removed and the actuating rod being shown in section,

Figure 19 is a similar view to Figure 18 but showing the tumbler members in the unlocked position, and

Figure 20 is a somewhat diagrammatic View of a further modification.

In carrying the invention into efiect and referring first to Figures 1 and 2 which illustrate the principle of the invention, the improved lock mechanism comprises a fixed part I and a movable part 2, both of which are recessed to form a space 3 which in the locked position of the movable part serves to retain rows of tumbler members 4 of varying lengths so that in the locked position the line of division between the rows of tumbler members is of stepped form, but the tumbler members are free to be moved within the said space by a suitable key to bring the abutting ends of the tumbler members into alignment with each other and with a line 5 dividing the fixed part and the movable part, so that the latter is free to be moved in a plane parallel with the plane containing the tumbler members.

While in Figure 1 the line of division 5 between the rows of tumbler members is, in the unlocked position, straight, in Figure 2 this line is arcuate, otherwise the principle of the invention remains the same.

Referring now to Figures 3 to 13 which show a practical embodiment of the invention as applied by way of example only to a conventional door bolt, the bolt is indicated at I and is slidably mounted upon a fixedbase 8 which has a longitudinal recess 9 to receive the bolt while the latter itself is formed with a recess l0, intermediate its ends, open on the bottom edge of the bolt so that when in its-forward and locked position this recess coincides with a complementary recess II in the fixed part with which it forms a common space for retaining two rows of tumbler members 12 which serve to maintain the bolt locked when the bottom row of tumbler members bear at their bottom edges upon the top of a guide plate l3 for an operating key and the line of division between the tumbler members of the two rows is of stepped form and out of alignment with the line of division 14 separating the bolt and its fixed base. flexible character and may be of the form shown in Figures 12 and 13, being made, for example, from thin metal or metallic tape, and of a thickness of about .005 inch and where, as in the ex-' ample illustrated, the bolt is secured on the inside of the door, like a rim lock, it is convenient to have the key introduced edgewise through a horizontal channel l5 the lower guide plate l3 of which is curved upwardly at the rear and extends somewhat into the lower tumbler recess l I, while the upper guide plate l6 of the channel is inclined rearwardly to form a reduced portion I50 of the channel which serves to locate the key in the correct position for engagement of the tumblers. The upper part l6 of the key guide may be made from springy metal and disposed so that the reduced portion I50 is sufficient only topermit the passage of the key. The key l8 along one end edge thereof is formed with steps 19 of a form corresponding to the stepped line of division between the two rows of tumblers when in the locked position so that engagement of the stepped edge of the key in the appropriate manner with the bottoms of the lowermost tumblerswill enable the tumblers as a whole to be moved to straighten this line of division and bring the same into alignment with the dividing line l4 when the tumblers of the uppermost row The operating key is of a,

thereof will be disposed wholly within the recess it in the bolt. In this position the bolt is free to be moved, thereby representing the unlocked position, and movement of the bolt is conveniently efiected by the rotation of a handle or knob 26 at the front of the door, the knob being connected at the rear with a lever 2! having an elongated slot 22 in which a pin 23 projecting rearwardly from the bolt engages to slide the bolt against the action of a spring 24 secured between the lever and the fixed part 8 of thelock mechanism.

t is necessary in this form of lock, where the tumblers may fall into the locked position by gravity action, that there should be some control as to the downward movement of the tumblers in the upper row to ensure that this movement shall only take place when the individual tumblers of this row are opposite their mate tumblers oi the bottom row and this may be achieved by forming the tumblers of the upper row at the rear thereof with a longitudinal slot 25 (Figures 3, 4, 7 and 8) and providing a plate 26 with an inwardly turned flange 2'! adapted to engage within the slot formed at the back of the upper row of tumblers when these are in their raised position. corresponding to a released condition of the bolt. In this position of the tumblers the slots in the uppermost row will be in alignment to receivethe said flange which is normally spring urged into engagement with the aligned slots by a spring 28 bearing against the upper part of the plate 28 which along its upper edge is formed with an inturned flange 29 arranged to bear along its edge against the rear of the fixed part of the lock mechanism. The engagement of the flange 21 in the aligned slots 25 of the upper row 01 tumblers holds these tumblers from downward movement until the edge 30 (Figure 8) on the bolt comes into contact with an inclined edge 3| at the end of the flange 2'! adjacent this edge of the bolt when this edge, in the continued shooting of the bolt, will ride upon such inclined edge and thereby thrust the plate 26 rearwards against the action of the spring 28 and thus release the flange 21 from engagement with the tumblers. At this position, however, the tumblers in the upper row will be immediately opposite their mate tumblers of the bottom row so that the tumblers of the upper row are free to fall to lock the bolt in the fully shot position. The retaining of the tumblers of the upper row in the raised position by the flange 21 is also desired when the bolt is being withdrawn, and for this purpose the forward portion of the bolt is formed with a longitudinal slot 32 to receive the flange as the bolt returns and while the flange is urged into engagement with the slots 25 in those tumblers of the upper row which remain within the common retaining space. The plate 26 is provided with an opening 39 at one corner thereof which permits the pin 23 to be arrested in a position in which all the tumblers are accommodated within the common space II], II.

To unlock the bolt from the other side of the mechanism the unlocking key l8 would be inserted as shown in dotted lines in Figures 5 and 6, there being a second operating knob provided on the inside of the door and secured to the squared shaft I20 to which the first knob 20 is also secured.

A latched condition of the lock mechanism is possible by providing a hook 40 (Figure 5) pivoted at 4| to a convenient fixed part so that the hook 40 may engage over the pin 23 to limit the forward movement thereof such that the turnblers of the upper row are prevented from reaching a position in which they lie opposite their mate tumblers of the bottom row. The door, therefore, is free to be opened and closed without the necessity of employing the key. The hook member 40 is readily releasable to permit the bolt to be fully shot to provide a locked condition of the tumblers when required.

When applied to a mortise type lock a duplicated arrangement of the key guide l may be provided extending to opposite faces of the door but it may be convenient to incline the channels downwardly in a direction leading away from the tumblers.

An adaptation of the principle of the invention suitable for an electric switch controlling many different circuits is illustrated in Figure 14 where the upper row of tumblers 4 is extended upon either side of the bottom row so that the bolt 2 may be fully locked in any one of seven different positions, one position being that shown, and the other six positions being obtainable by moving the bolt to the left or right to bring one or more of the excess tumblers in the upper row thereof into locking position with respect to the lower tumblers.

In Figure 15 the improved lock is shown modified to permit of its use with a master key it simply by forming the lower tumblers of the lock with a shoulder 44 so that a central gap 55 exists between the adjacent tumblers at the bottom thereof, in which gaps tongues 56 on the master key, having shouldered ends M corresponding with the gap shoulders 44, are adapted to enter to actuate the tumblers, the depth a of which for the tumblers of diiferent locks will be different although the depth 1) will be the same. This provides for almost an unlimited number of key permutations while permitting a master key to operate all locks.

A look according to the invention may also be rendered proof against picking simply by providing the base strip 48 of the key guide (Figures 16 and 1'7) with a central opening or slot 49 bounded along its edges by flanges 56 which provide bearing surfaces for the key (the fianges being closed along their outer edges by upstanding fianges 5 I) so that only a complete key which will engage along its edges upon these flanges r can be introduced into the key channel 52 to actuate the tumblers, since if an attempt was made to pick the lock by the introduction of individual key strips these would merely pass through the said slot 49. The upper strip 53 of the key guide is conveniently formed from springy metal and extended almost to the opening 54 in the framework 55 of the lock mechanism in which the tumblers are located so as to afford the maximum guiding support for the key within the gap present between the upper strip 53 and the said flanges 5B of the key guide which gap is so narrow that material thicker than that of which the proper key is made cannot pass to reach the tumblers. Any tendency for the upper edge portion of the key between these flanges to miss the tumblers due to the existence of the slot 49 is prevented by providing a lip 51 at the top of the slot which would serve to constrain the key to engage properly with the lower tumblers.

A modification of the invention suitable for the operation of a pivot type latch and illustrated in Figures 18 and 19 comprises a squared rod 59 carrying the latch 50 and passed through similar square openings 6| in two fixed outer plates 62 (the front plate being removed in the figures) and in a central plate 63 slidable within the fixed plates upon guides 54 under the control of the tumblers 65 which, in the locked condition (Figure 18), are retained in the common space 66 formed in part by the recess 51 in the slidable plate (Figure 19) and in part by the recess 68 in the fixed guide 64. In the locked condition of the tumblers the square openings 6| in the two outer fixed plates 62 are out of alignment with the square opening in the central slidable plate, as shown in Figure 18, with the result that the rod 59 cannot be rotated, but upon actuation of the tumblers by the proper key to free the lock the rod is rotatable to slide the plate 63 and bring all the square openings into alignment, in which condition of the parts the latch 65 can be actuated. The sliding move ment of the plate 63 to release the latch is against the action of a spring 59 connected at one end to a pin H! on the plate 53 (the pin being slidable within an elongated slot H in one of the fixed plates 62) and at its other end to an anchor 12 on the fixed plate.

The invention is applicable to locks in which the tumblers are movable horizontally into the locked or unlocked positions and in such case provision may be made for the tumblers to be moved into their normally locked position by spring action. Such an arrangement is illustrated diagrammatically in Figure 20 where the sliding belt or bolt-like member F3 is vertically disposed for sliding movement between vertical fixed guides i l under the control of the tumblers i5 which are horizontally disposed for sliding movement within the recess 15. The tumbler members are shown in their locked position and will be moved into their unlocked position by the key and to provide for their return movement the tumbler members which move into the bolt l3 are each provided with a central bore 11 adapted to receive a pin EB carrying a spring 19, the arrangement being such that as the tumblers are moved to the unlocked position the pins 13 will enter their bores l! in the tumblers and the springs ill will be compressed with the result that the springs operate to return the tumblers to the locked position when the parts are properly positioned for this to happen.

I claim:

1. A lock mechanism comprising in combination a fixed part having a recess therein, a second part mounted for movement in the recess on said fixed part, which recess forms a guide for said movable part, the said fixed part having a further recess disposed, in the locked position of the parts, to lie opposite a recess in the movable part so as to form therewith a common space, a series of co-planar pairs of tumbler members arranged side by side to form two rows of members longitudinally of the fixed part with the adjacent tumbler members all in light contact with each other, the two tumbler members of each pair being, in the locked position, coaxial with each other and disposed in the, said common space, and the tumbler members being movable in said space in a direction substantially at right angles to the direction of movement of the movable part, and a key guide adapted to lead the inner end of a push key made of very thin fiexible material into contact with the outer ends of the tumbler members of. one row thereof to move the tumbler members within the said space into the unlocked position thereof.

2. A look mechanism as claimed in claim 1,

and including a spring-actuated detent member adapted automatically to engage one of the rows of tumbler members and to prevent these tumbler members from moving axially when the movable part is moved from the locked position, means to disengage said detent automatically from the tumbler members when the movabl part is moved into the locked position. 3. A lock mechanism comprising in combination a fixed plate having a recess on its inner face and disposed to lie in a vertical plane and also having a second recess in the bottom portion thereof, a part mounted in said first recess for movement therein with respect to the fixed part and having a slot in its lower portion which, in the locked position of the parts, lies opposite the second recess in the bottom portion or" the fixed plate so as to form with the said second recess at that time a common space on the inside of the fixed plate, a plurality of coplanar pairs of vertically disposed tumbler members arranged in one row of pairs longitudinally of the fixed part so that the adjacent tumbler members of each row are in light contact with each other, the tumbler members of each pair comprising an upper such member and a lower member having end to end contact when, in the locked position of the movable part, the pairs of tumbler members being situated within the said common space, and a key guide adapted to lead a push key of very thin flexible material into contact with the outer ends of the lower tumbler members to move the pairs of tumbler members upwardly within said space into the unlocked position of the tumblers.

4. A look mechanism as claimed in claim 3, and including a spring-actuated detent member adapted automatically to engage one of the rows of tumbler members and to prevent these tumbler members from moving axially when the movable part is moved from the locked position, means to disengage said detent automatically from the tumbler members when the movable part is moved into the locked position.

HUGO JOHN BUCHANAN -WOLLASTON 

